Page 64 of Tempting the Goalie
Finally, Phoenix cracks half a smile. “Glad to see you happy, Bean.”
And with that my brother gets back to work. We leave the restaurant and head out to the sunny day. “Okay you two, I’m watching Braden, you go move Elyna into the loft.”
“You Thornes don’t waste time.” Elyna laughs.
“We do not.” I nod.
Elyna passes me her diaper bag and shows me all the different compartments with diapers, bum cream, bottles, andformula. I assure her I can handle it, and she and Luc head back to their house to pack while I take little Braden to the main house.
When I arrive, Daddy is there. I leave the stroller out on the porch and carry Braden in on one hip and the diaper bag on my opposite shoulder.
“Now that’s a sight.” Daddy laughs. “With your brothers so attached to being single I gave up on the hope of becoming a grandfather.”
“Don’t get your hopes up. Luc is just as terrified of settling down as my brothers,” I warn Daddy.
“I think there’s hope with Luc. I can see how much he cares for you,” Daddy says.
Braden starts to complain in my arms and he’s getting a little heavy for me to hold. “I better get this little guy settled in the family room,” I mention to Daddy.
“Okay, Bean. I’m off to work,” he says, and he leaves through the front door.
Spending the afternoon with Braden leaves me to my thoughts. I always wanted a big family, and that hasn’t changed. I just wonder if Luc will ever be able to give me everything I want. I never believed he would be in a committed relationship with me, and here we are. I just hope with time he’ll see the forever I’ve always wanted for us.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Luc
It feels like a whirlwind living on the Thorne property. On the one hand, this was the beautiful, well-kept, well-loved property I grew up beside. Our property was nowhere close to its size. When Mom was alive she cared for our small piece of land. She built flower gardens and vegetable gardens. It didn’t take long for them to wither away after her death. Our house may not have been fancy, but Mom injected her own style and love. It was a home and not the trash can it’s become. When Mom died, the Thornes opened their home to Elyna and me since Papa was in a worse state than his usual. They treated us like family, which is something we didn’t have. Now Phoenix Thorne is taking us in. Giving us a safe place to stay. He gave Elyna more hours at the microbrewery, and I was here to watch my nephew, usually with Izzy’s help. The job I had scheduled at the lumberyard fell through. When Eric heard, he offered me the early morning shift at the orchard. It means I wake up with the rise of the sun, but I’ll take it because the money is good and it allows me to help Elyna with Braden during the day. The Thornes have a way ofstepping up for those they love. It’s the reason Izzy offered to fake date me off the bat. I just hope I won’t let her down.
I text Izzy as I make my way to the main house with a picnic basket Elyna helped me pack in my right hand. I spent the morning picking apples. I woke up at 4:30 a.m. and got to the orchard by 5:00. When I finished my shift, I went back to the fancy loft to shower. Phoenix didn’t cut corners on that house he built.
Me:Are you ready?
The balls roll but a response doesn’t come right away.
Izzy:I’ll meet you outside. Asher is being a pain in my ass.
I smile at her message. Each of her brothers now knows we are together, and each one has had a slightly different reaction to the news. Becket saw us kissing, so I appreciate how weird that was. Eric warned me not to hurt her and then proceeded to shake my hand. He also told me I was a good guy. Asher went off on a rant about how we’re bros, and how could I go behind his back and date his sister? I am friends with Asher. He’s just over a year older than me and we went to the same high school. It didn’t make sense that he would feel betrayed though. We’ve learned a lot of people in Val-Du-Lys put money on us getting together.
The large wooden door of the main house opens and Izzy struts outside wearing a pair of black short shorts and a white tank top. I can see she has a bathing suit on and a blanket in her hand since I told her we’re going to Mont Erable, which translates to Maple Mountain. It’s an eighteen-meter waterfall that branches into a river. The area around the waterfall is covered in trails and greenery, making it one of the more private waterfalls in Quebec. We used to go there a lot as teenagers in the summer and enjoyed swimming in the cool water. The annoying part of everyone knowing we are together means webarely have any alone time unless we are sneaking off, and that can be tricky.
“We can take one of the ATVs,” Izzy suggests, since neither of us has a car and it is a good thirty-minute walk to get there.
“Sure,” I say.
“We have one parked in the garage,” she says.
I follow her to the garage. “Do you want to drive or should I?” Izzy asks.
“Your call,” I say to her.
“Okay.” She puts on a helmet and passes me one. She gets on first, which means she’s driving. I place the picnic basket in a storage compartment where she placed the blanket, and I hop on the back and hug her waist.
“Ready?” She smiles looking back at me.
“As I’ll ever be.” I grin.
She laughs and shakes her head, then we take off.
